“Fucking noisy,” Rafe grumbled as the advice being offered rose in volume. “Unless you’re seriously interested, why don’t we go to that room Ganz got for us, order some drinks, food if you like, and forget about these people. Or if you’d like a private performance, I could order up that too. We wouldn’t have to deal with the goddamn noise.”
“I don’t know… really, a private performance? Is it embarrassing?”
“If it is, we’ll ask them to leave. You decide though. I don’t care.” This was pretty tame stuff, for which he was grateful. He’d grown virtuous, for Christ’s sake, when it came to Nicole.
“Okay, let’s. We can always come back, right?”
“Sure, whatever you want. Let’s go find our room.”
They’d made their way halfway through the crowded salon, Rafe protecting Nicole with one arm around her shoulder, the other in front of her, when a dark-haired man with slicked-back hair, dressed in a showy pearl gray double-breasted suit, stepped in front of them.
His smile was more of a leer. “Nice piece of ass, Contini. Can I have seconds?”
Rafe’s arm tightened on Nicole’s shoulder. “No. She’s my fiancée.”
“Really?” His glittering gaze looked Nicole up, then looked her down, before flicking to Rafe.
“Really,” Rafe growled. “So unless your papa wants to visit his little prince in the hospital tomorrow, I suggest you back the fuck off.”
The interloper flashed a cocky grin. “My papa wouldn’t like that.”
“You’ve met Carlos, right?” Rafe paused, waiting for the name to register. “In case you or your papa are inclined to be stupid.”
Even in the dim light you could see the man turn white.
“So either I punch your fucking lights out right now and we can start a small war or you can back the fuck off. Your call.”
As the man spun around and shouldered his way through the crowd, Nicole looked up. “Have I met Carlos?”
“You might have. He was on the yacht. Brown hair, my height, but built like a bull.”
She shook her head.
“You’ll see him tomorrow. He’s here in Paris. You’ll like him. He plays Chopin like a professional. Good hands.” Especially with a knife.
“You must play too.” She’d seen the Bösendorfer grand piano in his Geneva home.
“Not much anymore. Occasionally for my mother.” Rafe glanced over her head and nodded at one of his men who’d closed in as Yuri blocked their path, then watched him turn and follow the Russian. “Sorry about that. Yuri likes to think he’s as tough as his father. He isn’t.” He smiled. “Should we see if we can make it to the hallway this time?”
When Rafe opened the door to the private room, Nicole stood on the threshold and breathed, “Jeez…”
When she didn’t move, Rafe said, “Want another room?”
She looked up and smiled. “This little love nest will do just fine.”
He laughed, easing her forward with a hand on her back. “I thought it might have been too much.” He shut the door.
“Seriously, I’m going to be a princess tonight. Gold bed, white satin coverlet, murals on the walls, those big chairs made for poufy skirts, and, if I’m not mistaken, I see a mirror on the ceiling over the bed.” She glanced up at Rafe. “Tell me, do palaces come with those? You’d know.”
“Just for the record,” he teased, not answering the question about ceiling mirrors, “I’m not playing a prince.”
“You can be my stable boy then. That would be, like, forbidden and sexy, right?”
He laughed. “Jesus, tiger, where the hell do you get your ideas?”
“What? It’s not common knowledge? Stable boys are always studly.”
He grinned. “Maybe you’re thinking about their horses.”
She put up her hand. “Okay, that’s too kinky.”
“And this place is too refined, pussycat. So I’m thinking, drinks first,” he said, changing the subject. “What do you want?”
“You said there was a menu.”
Walking over to a gilded desk, he pulled open the drawer and lifted out a leather-bound folio.
“How did you know that was there? I thought you hadn’t come here before.”
“I figured.” He flicked open the pale blue cover and glanced at the table of contents.
“Do all sex clubs have menus?”
Not exactly, unless the question What do you want? counts as a menu. “I’m not sure. I haven’t seen one like this before. Here, see if there’s some drink you like.” He handed her the blue leather folio.